


O is for Oblique

by KateKintail



Series: The ABC Series 2006 [15]
Category: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Genre: F/M, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-03
Updated: 2013-02-03
Packaged: 2017-11-28 01:50:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,148
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/668895
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KateKintail/pseuds/KateKintail
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The door was cracked open, so Willow put her palm to it and pushed it open just a little bit more.</p>
            </blockquote>





	O is for Oblique

**Author's Note:**

> This is part of a collection of short H/C ficlets (they were supposed to be drabbles but I'm terrible at writing short things) from various fandoms. I asked on one of my LiveJournals for one word for each letter of the alphabet, as well as a fandom and/or pairing.

The door was cracked open, so Willow put her palm to it and pushed it open just a little bit more. The sliver of light from the hallway fell upon the bed and she saw Dawn sleeping soundly in bed. Willow had been feeling uneasy all night, as if sensing something were wrong. Even a long, hot shower hadn't lifted the feeling. But after calling Buffy's cell, Xander's apartment, and checking on Dawn, she just chalked her feeling up to normal middle-of-the-night-in-Sunnydale vibes and decided to go to sleep early.  
  
So she headed down the hallway towards her bedroom. Already in long-sleeved, fuzzy pink and lavender pajamas, there was nothing left for her to do but to run a comb through her hair a few times and then jump under the covers. Once she was snuggled up with the blankets and pillows she was sure she would feel much better.   
  
Willow did not bother switching on the light in the bedroom, opting instead to let the moonlight lead her in and to her dresser. She studied herself in the mirror as she combed her hair for a few minutes. Nothing looked out of the ordinary as far as she was concerned, either. She set the comb down and turned, intending to climb into bed. But, when she turned, she was startled to find Spike standing on the far side of her bedroom.   
  
Startled, she practically jumped a mile and she did let out a bit of a shriek, though not loud enough to wake Dawn. With her hand pressed to her racing heart, she took a deep breath and sighed. "You really surprised me," she said, stating the obvious.   
  
"I didn't mean to." His voice was deep and dark, almost menacing. It chilled her.   
  
With curiosity and apprehension in her voice, "What are you doing here?" Could it be that he was evil again? Could it be that he had come to attack her? Of course, now he was supposed to be good. Now Spike had a soul. Of course, the fact that he had a soul didn't mean he wasn't evil. She knew better than most that people could be evil just as easily with a soul as without one.   
  
But when Spike did not answer her question, Willow began to grow worried. She did not want to use magic to hurt someoneâ€" anyoneâ€" again, but she would if it meant defending herself and protecting her friends. "Spike? Why are you here?"   
  
More silence. Silence that made her tense up.   
  
"If you won't tell me..." She was unsure about finishing her threat. But her hand moved along her dresser to find the small crucifix thereupon. Her hand closed around it and she felt powerful. She heard him move, clothes rustling, and her eyes strained in the darkness to see him, but he still stood in the shadows. The only thing that let her know he was still there was the sound of deep, heavy breaths. Wait... breaths? "Spike?"  
  
"I can't tell you what's wrong," Spike finally answered.   
  
"What?" This was all becoming very strange. "You show up in my bedroom in the middle of the night, practically scare me to death, and then you can't even say why you're here? Why can't you?"  
  
More silence. It filled up a full minute and started on the next while Willow tried to figure out what to say. But it was broken with a soft, wet-sounding "H'Ttchhhh!"   
  
"What was that?" She knew perfectly well what it sounded like... but how could it have been that? Vampires didn'tâ€"  
  
"hutChihhh!" This time it sounded stronger and it certainly looked stronger, as it threw Spike forward and out of the shadows. He was bent over at the waist, both hands up over his nose and mouth and his eyes closed. "hihTChihhh!"   
  
Willow thought it safe to conclude now that Spike was not there to attack her. Assuming that vampire sneezes weren't like crocodile tears, she put down the crucifix and moved towards him. The outstanding question was, however, what were vampire sneezes about? "Allergic to something?" she asked, trying to recall what sort of reaction vampires had to garlic. She was certain she'd never seen one sneezing from it, though.   
  
Spike shook his head. "I feel warm."   
  
Willow moved closer, noticing the blanket around his shoulders and the pink flush around his nose. She extended her hand and pressed the back of it to his forehead. "You *are* warm. Why are you warm?"  
  
Shaking his head, "I don't know." He sniffed hard. "That's why I came to you. You've got to fix me."   
  
"Fix you?"  
  
"Cast a spell or make a potion or *something*. Hah!" He gasped audibly and held it for a moment. "hihhChihh!" Spike scrubbed at his nose. "Fix me!" he pleaded, sniffling and swaying unsteadily.   
  
Willow shook her head. "But I haven't the vaguest idea what's wrong. We should call Giles. Or wait for Buffy at leastâ€""  
  
Spike's eyes grew wide. "Not Buffy. I don't want her to see me like this. Bad enough that she's seen me..." He ducked his head, the emotional scars from his soul still fresh to him. "Don't want her to see me. Don't want Li'l Bit to see me, either."  
  
But he didn't mind if she saw. Or, at least, he minded but was willing to forgo the embarrassment if it meant she could help. And he was counting on her to help. But she had no idea what to do.   
  
"hihhT'Chuhh! ihhhChuhh!" He cupped one hand to his nose and mouth and the other to his forehead. "hihhhCHIHhh!" He forward, looking like he might tip right over with another strong sneeze.   
  
Alarmed, Willow reached out and grabbed his arm. "You need to lie down." She thought of how far away Xander's place was as she watched him sniffle and rub his nose. She tried to remind himself that his pale complexion was normal, but he looked so tired and helpless. "You need to lie down now," she said, turning away from moral conduct and sound thinking as she turned down the covers of her bed. "You'd better get in."   
  
"You getting in with me, Red?" he asked hopefully, acting especially chilly. He curled up under the covers as Willow tucked them around him.  
  
She shook her head before she could speak. "I'm going downstairs to find some books and some herbs."  
  
"To fix me? hihh-Chihh!"   
  
She cracked a smile. "To get rid of your... cold," she replied. "There's a difference. I really wouldn't know where to begin to fix everything else." This made Spike smile back, amazingly enough, a sure sign that he was feverish. However, more amazing was that Willow was fighting the idea of studying while sitting in bed... just so that she could keep an eye on him, of course, to get a better idea of what might be wrong.


End file.
